ADOBE ARCHITECTURE

OLD TRADITIONS & NEW IMPROVEMENTS

 

 

 

The wide spectrum of using Adobe in building in the Arab Region had provided us with many wonderful examples over the years, as in Egypt since the Pharos until the Nubian villages. In Saudi Arabia, we find the King's Adobe palaces as well as the private adobe residences. Also in Marrakech, we have the wonderful Kaspa with its adobe architecture impression.

 

On the other hand, the rush of improvement and industrialization in the building sector could not provide people with human shelters.  Therefore, the aim of our twenty five years of work is the revival and improvement of adobe buildings in the following aspects:

 

1.    Improvement and production of adobe bricks by using appropriate machines.

2.    Using different kinds of soil from different regions and stabilized with different materials.

3.    Practical training to local craftsmen and masons.

4.    Revival and improvement of dome and vault construction.

5.    Revival and improvement of Rammed Earth construction.

 

Examples of improving Rammed Earth Construction:

 

  1. New combination of construction between Rammed Earth and Compressed Earth Blocks (CEB).  While walls are built with Rammed Earth, are covered with dome and vault by using CEB.  This model has been successfully implemented and proved to be a good solution to overcome the economic situation and climatic conditions.

 

  1. These models have given the people the opportunity to build their modern adobe houses with a natural human comfortable architecture.

 

Different projects will be presented by slides and a short documentary film.

 

Adel Fahmy

Dipl. Ing. Architect

1095 Cornish El Nil Street, Garden City, Cairo 11451, Egypt

Tel: (20) 2-795-1020

Mobile: (20) 12-44 60 800

E-mail:

 adfahmy@internetegypt.com